Green light for gender-neutral passports High Court challenge

A campaigner has been given the go-ahead to bring a High Court challenge against the Government over gender-neutral passports.

Christie Elan-Cane, who has given evidence to Parliament about transgender equality, believes the UK's passport application process, which requires individuals to indicate whether they are male or female, is inappropriate.

At a hearing in London on Wednesday, Mr Justice Gilbart granted the campaigner, who was present in court, permission to bring a judicial review.

He announced: "I am satisfied this case passes the test for the grant of permission, and is arguable."

A full hearing of the challenge will now be held on a date to be fixed.

Last month, Canada became the latest country to offer citizens gender-neutral travel documents. Australia, Denmark, Germany, Malta, New Zealand, Pakistan, India and Nepal already have a third category.

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Top Ten Most Embarrassing Airport Security Incidents

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Top Ten Most Embarrassing Airport Security Incidents

A woman was left mortified when a pair of ‘large discoloured pants’ were produced from her hand luggage while travelling with her business clients who were waiting in the queue behind her.

A woman travelling with her parents was left extremely red faced when a rather large and obvious sex toy was revealed on the screens as it passed through the scanner.

Another unfortunate traveller, this time male, was heading off on a romantic break with his new girlfriend when he was stopped for a routine search. Underwear was drawn forth from his hand luggage, complete with ‘obvious skid marks’. He claimed he hadn’t intentionally packed them to wear.

One woman was pulled aside with armed police on standby as the scanner revealed a ‘belt of bullets’…which turned out to be a row of AA batteries.

One man confessed that his plans for a mid-air pre-holiday proposal were dashed when he inadvertently set off the metal detector. The public search that followed required him to produce the ring from his pocket in front of his on-looking girlfriend, who immediately clocked what it was.

Another woman, who claimed to always take a bag of soap powder on holiday for emergency clothes washing purposes, was confronted by security staff in front of her astonished grandchildren as the package was mistaken for a vast quantity of illegal class A drugs.

One man claimed to have been highly embarrassed when asked to remove a large tub of ‘personal lubricant’ as it contravened the airplane liquid allowance.

Another man felt humiliated when a collection of pornographic magazines in his hand luggage was revealed during a routine check.

A man in his forties claimed that he ‘struggled to live down’ his airport experience, when haemorrhoid cream was pulled out of his case in front of his new and younger partner as they went away on their first romantic break together.

A woman was left mortified when airport staff questioned a product in her bag which turned out to be anti-viral drugs for genital herpes. Her new partner worked as a pharmacist, so quickly realised what they were upon seeing them.